Average power rating of opponents played: PITTSBURGH 2.8, COLUMBUS 3.25

SCHEDULE AND RESULTS

PITTSBURGH - Schedule

Date

Opponent

Score

SU

Line

ATS

Total

O/U

10/8/2013

CAROLINA

5-2

W

0, -200

W

5.5 ov

O

10/11/2013

at FLORIDA

3-6

L

0, -160

L

5.5 ov

O

10/12/2013

at TAMPA BAY

5-4

W

0, -125

W

5.5 ov

O

10/15/2013

EDMONTON

3-2

W

0, -255

W

6 ov

U

10/17/2013

at PHILADELPHIA

4-1

W

0, -155

W

5.5 un

U

10/19/2013

VANCOUVER

4-3

W

0, -160

W

5.5 un

O

10/21/2013

COLORADO

0-1

L

0, -165

L

5.5 ev

U

10/25/2013

NY ISLANDERS

3-4

L

0, -215

L

6 ev

O

10/26/2013

at TORONTO

1-4

L

0, -145

L

5.5 ov

U

10/28/2013

at CAROLINA

3-1

W

0, -190

W

5.5 ov

U

10/30/2013

BOSTON

3-2

W

0, -125

W

5 ov

P

11/1/2013

COLUMBUS

4-2

W

0, -175

W

5.5 un

O

11/2/2013

at COLUMBUS

11/6/2013

at NY RANGERS

11/9/2013

at ST LOUIS

11/13/2013

PHILADELPHIA

COLUMBUS - Schedule

Date

Opponent

Score

SU

Line

ATS

Total

O/U

10/10/2013

at BUFFALO

4-1

W

0, -115

W

5 ov

P

10/12/2013

BOSTON

1-3

L

0, +115

L

5 ov

U

10/15/2013

at DETROIT

1-2

L

0, +100

L

5.5 un

U

10/17/2013

at MONTREAL

3-5

L

0, +140

L

5 ov

O

10/19/2013

at WASHINGTON

1-4

L

0, +110

L

5.5 un

U

10/20/2013

VANCOUVER

3-1

W

0, +110

W

5.5 un

U

10/22/2013

NEW JERSEY

4-1

W

0, -140

W

5 un

P

10/25/2013

TORONTO

5-2

W

0, -130

W

5.5 un

O

10/27/2013

ANAHEIM

3-4

L

0, -125

L

5 ov

O

11/1/2013

at PITTSBURGH

2-4

L

0, +155

L

5.5 un

O

11/2/2013

PITTSBURGH

11/5/2013

OTTAWA

11/7/2013

NY RANGERS

11/9/2013

NY ISLANDERS

11/12/2013

at WASHINGTON

KEY GAME INFORMATION

PITTSBURGH: PITTSBURGH (AP) - The Pittsburgh Penguins didn't panic when the bitter disappointment of last spring's sweep at the hands of the Boston Bruins wore off.
If anything, the Penguins went the other way. While other NHL powers underwent substantial roster overhauls, Pittsburgh did what it could to keep the core of one of the league's most consistent winners in tack.
The Penguins awarded coach Dan Bylsma with a contract extension shortly after getting swept by the Bruins in the Eastern Conference finals. Pittsburgh also reached agreements with former league MVP Evgeni Malkin and Norris Trophy finalist Kris Letang.
Penguins star Sidney Crosby says the Penguins don't need to change their approach to be a threat to win their second Stanley Cup in five years.
Pittsburgh opens the season Oct. 3 against New Jersey.

COLUMBUS: COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - The top three topics on sports talk shows in this city are usually Ohio State football, Ohio State football recruiting and Ohio State football's spring practices.
The Columbus Blue Jackets haven't upset that pecking order, although they are elbowing their way into the conversation.
Dead last in the league early in the NHL's shortened last season, the Blue Jackets suddenly found the winning touch. They went 19-5-5 down the stretch, energizing their fan base and shocking a lot of opponents used to walking over the 12-year-old franchise.
With the addition of free agent Nathan Horton to go with Vezina Trophy-winning goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky and a solid if largely unknown roster of proven pros, the Blue Jackets are expecting big things as they prep for a season of promise.

The Pittsburgh Penguins scored four regulation goals for the first time in six games Friday against the Blue Jackets.

They'll get a chance to do it again Saturday night at Columbus as they try to complete a home-and-home sweep against their new Metropolitan Division foes.

The Penguins (10-4-0) last went six games without scoring four regulation goals from Dec. 29-Jan. 11, 2012, and lost all six.

This year, they came out of such a stretch with a 3-3-0 record before breaking out for four in the first 25:34 of Friday's 4-2 win.

Marc-Andre Fleury made 37 saves, and allowed two or fewer goals for the ninth time in 12 starts. He leads the league with 10 wins for the first-place Penguins.

"We gave them way too many chances to play in our end," Pittsburgh center Brandon Sutter said. "You've got to look at Flower and how he played. He did a great job for us."

But Friday was just the third time Fleury has faced 30 shots.

"I think the team has done a good job of limiting the opportunities in front of him," Penguins coach Dan Bylsma told the team's official website. "Allowing him to make that save and be solid in net. We've kept scoring chances down. I think we've done a good job of that in a lot of the games to this point. Shot totals have been down."

Chris Kunitz opened the scoring at 7:11 of the first period. He has goals in three straight games and the Penguins are 7-0 in games he's scored.

Sutter, Kris Letang and rookie Jayson Megna also tallied for Pittsburgh, which has won three in a row after losing three straight. Sidney Crosby recorded an assist to push his point total to an NHL-leading 22.

Reigning Vezina Trophy winner Sergei Bobrovsky was replaced by Curtis McElhinney early in the second period after allowing three goals on 13 shots.

Bobrovsky, who has lost six of his last eight starts overall, has a 5.62 goals-against average in his last five games against Pittsburgh, including a playoff appearance while with Philadelphia.

It was the second straight loss for the Blue Jackets after they outscored opponents 12-4 during a three-game win streak. Columbus allowed two early second-period goals in their 4-3 loss to Anaheim Sunday after taking a 1-0 lead into the dressing room.

Blue Jackets center Ryan Johansen scored for the fourth time in seven games and defenseman James Wisniewski recorded a point for the fifth consecutive contest.

The Penguins have won four of five against the Blue Jackets, scoring at least four goals four times in that span. Crosby has three goals and eight assists during a six-game point streak versus Columbus.